The past few days here have been fairly breezy and quite a bit cooler than it should be this time of year. And by cooler, I mean that it was in the low 70s. Many people were commenting that it was December weather.
In fact, it's been so windy that on Sunday I got out a kite and Samuel, Jonathan and I went to the vacant lot next door to try to fly it. We were only marginally successful. My kite was lacking a tail, and then some of the material that holds the crossbars started to tear. Even in the short time we were out there, we had fun. I'm going to see what kites I can find while I'm in the States.
Another thing that happens when it gets cool like this is that the coats, hats and scarves come out. On Sunday night, Sandi, Brenda and I went to the grocery store. As we were leaving, I saw a little niño completely bundled up: thick, heavy flannel jacket, ski cap and scarf.
Then on Monday morning, many of the teachers and staff showed up similarly dressed. It's all a matter of perspective, of what we're used to. While I haven't put on a sweater yet, I am wearing long pants today. But I'm still in flip flops. I've turned off most of the ceiling fans in my house today. Last night I was still sleeping with only a sheet, my ceiling fan and the floor fan. Tonight I will probably turn the floor fan off.
And speaking of tropical depressions (we were talking about them, right?), Tropical Depression Sixteen (such a sexy name) has formed and is heading toward Cuba and later, Florida. Yes, just in time for my trip tomorrow, TD16 may hit Miami as my plane is trying to land. Of course, that also means that IF I land in Miami, my plane for Newark may not be able to leave. Hmmm, I seem to remember this movie. I think I lived it in August 2006 when I was coming here to Honduras for 5 1/2 months. The Miami airport was shut down and I had to spend an unexpected night (and pay unbudgeted dollars) in a nearby hotel. I'm hoping that TD16 is not a remake of that film.
Well, hopefully, my next post will happen while I'm in NJ...
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Sunday, September 19, 2010
Bits From the Bike...
In the past week, I've been out on my bike 5 times. In fact, I was hoping to get out there again this morning, but when I woke up, it was raining. Yes, I know. There have been many times I've ridden in the rain. But those were usually when I had no option: Want to get to the day's overnight camp? Ride your bike. Today, I had a choice and I chose not to ride.
However, let me try to regale you with some of my encounters and observations from the past week:
There's a kiddie carnival set up in a vacant lot right now. One morning there was a huge, and I mean HUGE, vulture sitting at the very top of the ferris wheel. Menacingly. Did I mention that it was huge? But it was gone on my next lap around the boulevard. Oh, well. Maybe it wasn't that big after all.
A gringa on a bike, riding loops on the boulevard, for exercise is still an oddity. People will stare. I usually meet their stares with a wave or a "Buenos días."
After this week, I think I know which are the best street vendors from which to eat. The ones with the most taxis stopped and the most taxistas eating. Of course, best does not always translate to safest.
I lost count of how many times this week I almost became a hood ornament for a taxi. I am giving serious consideration to getting a bell for the bike. And a helmet for my head. Glenda, did you just read that?
Friday morning must be Ladies' Day at the gym. I saw dozens of ladies coming and going, out running and speed walking. No other day has had as many ladies out there.
There is at least one other person in Comayagua who uses clipless pedals. I saw HER on Friday as she was leaving the gym. She was on her bike, clipping in as I passed, so I slowed down and waited for her to catch up. Then I told her that she is the only other person, besides me, that I've seen using clipless pedals. Unfortunately, I don't know the Spanish word for 'clipless' so I Spanglicized it to 'cleepless'.
If there are two people riding on one bike, the person on the seat pedals and the one on the top tube steers. Always. Unless there are small children involved.
So there you have it, my experiences on the bike this past week. I have no idea what the coming week will bring, in terms of new cycling adventures, but I'm planning to find out.
However, let me try to regale you with some of my encounters and observations from the past week:
There's a kiddie carnival set up in a vacant lot right now. One morning there was a huge, and I mean HUGE, vulture sitting at the very top of the ferris wheel. Menacingly. Did I mention that it was huge? But it was gone on my next lap around the boulevard. Oh, well. Maybe it wasn't that big after all.
A gringa on a bike, riding loops on the boulevard, for exercise is still an oddity. People will stare. I usually meet their stares with a wave or a "Buenos días."
After this week, I think I know which are the best street vendors from which to eat. The ones with the most taxis stopped and the most taxistas eating. Of course, best does not always translate to safest.
I lost count of how many times this week I almost became a hood ornament for a taxi. I am giving serious consideration to getting a bell for the bike. And a helmet for my head. Glenda, did you just read that?
Friday morning must be Ladies' Day at the gym. I saw dozens of ladies coming and going, out running and speed walking. No other day has had as many ladies out there.
There is at least one other person in Comayagua who uses clipless pedals. I saw HER on Friday as she was leaving the gym. She was on her bike, clipping in as I passed, so I slowed down and waited for her to catch up. Then I told her that she is the only other person, besides me, that I've seen using clipless pedals. Unfortunately, I don't know the Spanish word for 'clipless' so I Spanglicized it to 'cleepless'.
If there are two people riding on one bike, the person on the seat pedals and the one on the top tube steers. Always. Unless there are small children involved.
So there you have it, my experiences on the bike this past week. I have no idea what the coming week will bring, in terms of new cycling adventures, but I'm planning to find out.
Thursday, September 9, 2010
The Brevity of Life...
Our days are like grass; like wildflowers, we bloom and die.
The wind blows, and we are gone -- as though we had never been here. ~~ Psalm 103:15-16
Don't hang on, nothing lasts forever but the earth and sky.
It slips away, all your money won't another minute buy.
Dust in the wind, All we are is dust in the wind. ~~ Kansas
10 years old and his life has been snuffed out. I'm sure that when he woke up yesterday morning he had no idea it would be his last. Yet, it was. Gone before lunch.
The little guy died about 25 yards from our front gate, hit by a truck. Thankfully, his death was fairly instant. He used to come to the Center some years ago, as one of our "street kids" -- the poorest of the poor. He didn't attend school because his father wanted him to work to help support the family.
When I saw him yesterday, less than 10 minutes after it happened, there was already a crowd of 40 or 50 people gathered around him, staring. Gawking. Traffic on the Central American highway had come to a crawl in both directions. Both his mother and his father had already arrived and the mother was alternating between sobbing and wailing uncontrollably, and blaming the father with words of "This is all your fault. YOU made him work."
I stood there feeling helpless. I wanted to go up and just hug the mother, but a female police officer was already doing that. Then the mom would break away and pummel the father, and go back to the arms of the police officer. I could pray, and I did. I asked God to comfort the parents. I asked Him to somehow turn this into something good, for His Name's sake.
It's a scene that's all too common here, but for me, this was the first time I've witnessed it literally on our doorstep.
Sandi had, mercifully, run to our warehouse and grabbed a sheet to cover his small body. She told me that if she hadn't done this, he would have been lying there in the street, uncovered, for hours until the forensic police arrived and said the body could be removed.
When the father bent down to remove the sheet and look at him once again, the crowds pressed in closer for another glimpse. The mood grew very tense, as the mother did not want this to happen. I actually took a few steps back, sensing that it would only take the wrong thing to be said and then things could actually get violent. As the crowd drew back, satisfied in once more seeing this little guy lying there dead, being part of what's going on, having more to discuss with others later in the day, I saw his tiny arm and hand laying on the ground. It almost looked as if he were sleeping, but I knew differently. The blood all around him was bright red, and already thick from the hot sun.
With a few others, I turned around to go back through our gate. And I prayed.
Most of last night I thought about the brevity of life. How short it is. I wondered about this little guy and if He knew the Lord. I thought about how important it is to make the most out of every day because none of us know if it will be our last.
And I prayed: Lord, let my life count. Not for me, but for You and Your Kingdom.
But the love of the Lord remains forever with those who fear Him. His salvation extends to the children's children.
Praise the Lord, everything He has created, everything in all His kingdom... Let all that I am praise the Lord. ~~ Psalm 103:17, 22
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
Running Around in Tegucigalpa...
Sandi and I left Comayagua around 7:30am to head into Tegucigalpa. We had several places to go to and knew that with all the construction on the highway and with the main bridge into town being down (literally), we'd have to be quick at each place in order to get everything done.
You guessed it: we didn't get everything done.
Our first stop was Migraciones, where I was seeking a 30-day renewal of my visa and Sandi needed to renew her carnet. We both got our initial paperwork started, then got in line for the bank so that we could pay our respective fees. Interestingly, my fee for a 30-day visa renewal was the same as Sandi's one-year renewal of her carnet. Well, we stood in the bank line for almost an hour. Right before we had arrived at Migraciones, so had 5 or so Mormon missionaries, to get some of their paperwork done. Unfortunately, they got in the bank line about 4 people in front of us. Once at the window, the main Mormon missionary pulled out a stack of at least 20 - 25 passports and papers to pay for. You have got to be kidding me!!
After standing in line for way longer than either of us wanted to, Sandi and I were both finally able to pay our fees and get back in our respective lines. At my window for the visa renewal, things were going quite well, much faster than usual. The woman at the window made all the appropriate stamps in my passport and told me to take a seat and she'd have the boss sign my passport.
Sandi wasn't quite as fortunate. She was told that she'd need more paperwork from her bank. "But this is the same thing I've been bringing for years." "Yes, I know. But the laws have changed and now you need to bring different papers."
A few minutes later I was called back up to the window. "The boss just left for lunch and can't sign your passport yet. You may wait or come back later this afternoon." "When will the boss be back?" "Around 1:00pm." It was 11:15. We decided to leave and try to run more errands in the interim.
We made it in and out of PriceSmart in record time. I got my permanent membership card and Sandi picked up just a few things for the school. The only thing that I bought was a slice of pizza and a Diet Coke. It wasn't quite as good as the pizza at Costco. Plus, Glenda wasn't there to enjoy a slice with. :-)
Back at Migraciones, I got my signed passport and we were back on the road. Hopefully, that was the last time I will need to renew my visa. We have been assured that the government is going to start approving residency carnets within the month. Since I'll be in the States at the end of September, I'll get a fresh 90-day visa when I return. THAT should be plenty long enough for me to get my carnet.
From Migraciones we made our way over to the School of Tomorrow offices to pick up some PACEs for the school. There were only 4 boxes of them and we thought we'd be in and out pretty quickly. Nope. Our wait for the materials to be brought to us seemed very long. Very. Then, when it was time to start checking all the materials against the order list, the woman helping us was slower than slow. Sandi and I kind of took over that process as tactfully as we could. We wrapped the boxes of books into a tarp in the probably case of rain, and tried to get out of Teguc as quickly as possible.
We wanted to avoid the workers' demonstration that was happening. It could have been teachers, doctors, nurses, we're not sure, but we didn't want to get caught up in the middle of it. We were successful in that.
Since the main bridge into town collapsed about a month ago, the 'usual' detour takes you in a very long and round about way into town. Sandi knew of another way in and tried it out two weeks ago when picking up some people at the airport. That's the way we went. It made things much faster. Next time I go into Tegucigalpa, I want to take my camera and get some pictures. There are some scenes of the beauty of the mountains contrasted with the poverty of some of the barrios on that particular route that are etched into my mind.
We never did make it to Imapro to get medals and trophies that are needed. Sandi has to go back to Migraciones again ~ with different bank papers ~ to renew her carnet. But we made it back to Comayagua without incident.
You guessed it: we didn't get everything done.
Our first stop was Migraciones, where I was seeking a 30-day renewal of my visa and Sandi needed to renew her carnet. We both got our initial paperwork started, then got in line for the bank so that we could pay our respective fees. Interestingly, my fee for a 30-day visa renewal was the same as Sandi's one-year renewal of her carnet. Well, we stood in the bank line for almost an hour. Right before we had arrived at Migraciones, so had 5 or so Mormon missionaries, to get some of their paperwork done. Unfortunately, they got in the bank line about 4 people in front of us. Once at the window, the main Mormon missionary pulled out a stack of at least 20 - 25 passports and papers to pay for. You have got to be kidding me!!
After standing in line for way longer than either of us wanted to, Sandi and I were both finally able to pay our fees and get back in our respective lines. At my window for the visa renewal, things were going quite well, much faster than usual. The woman at the window made all the appropriate stamps in my passport and told me to take a seat and she'd have the boss sign my passport.
Sandi wasn't quite as fortunate. She was told that she'd need more paperwork from her bank. "But this is the same thing I've been bringing for years." "Yes, I know. But the laws have changed and now you need to bring different papers."
A few minutes later I was called back up to the window. "The boss just left for lunch and can't sign your passport yet. You may wait or come back later this afternoon." "When will the boss be back?" "Around 1:00pm." It was 11:15. We decided to leave and try to run more errands in the interim.
We made it in and out of PriceSmart in record time. I got my permanent membership card and Sandi picked up just a few things for the school. The only thing that I bought was a slice of pizza and a Diet Coke. It wasn't quite as good as the pizza at Costco. Plus, Glenda wasn't there to enjoy a slice with. :-)
Back at Migraciones, I got my signed passport and we were back on the road. Hopefully, that was the last time I will need to renew my visa. We have been assured that the government is going to start approving residency carnets within the month. Since I'll be in the States at the end of September, I'll get a fresh 90-day visa when I return. THAT should be plenty long enough for me to get my carnet.
From Migraciones we made our way over to the School of Tomorrow offices to pick up some PACEs for the school. There were only 4 boxes of them and we thought we'd be in and out pretty quickly. Nope. Our wait for the materials to be brought to us seemed very long. Very. Then, when it was time to start checking all the materials against the order list, the woman helping us was slower than slow. Sandi and I kind of took over that process as tactfully as we could. We wrapped the boxes of books into a tarp in the probably case of rain, and tried to get out of Teguc as quickly as possible.
We wanted to avoid the workers' demonstration that was happening. It could have been teachers, doctors, nurses, we're not sure, but we didn't want to get caught up in the middle of it. We were successful in that.
Since the main bridge into town collapsed about a month ago, the 'usual' detour takes you in a very long and round about way into town. Sandi knew of another way in and tried it out two weeks ago when picking up some people at the airport. That's the way we went. It made things much faster. Next time I go into Tegucigalpa, I want to take my camera and get some pictures. There are some scenes of the beauty of the mountains contrasted with the poverty of some of the barrios on that particular route that are etched into my mind.
We never did make it to Imapro to get medals and trophies that are needed. Sandi has to go back to Migraciones again ~ with different bank papers ~ to renew her carnet. But we made it back to Comayagua without incident.
Sunday, September 5, 2010
The View from the Bike...
Finally, I made it out for another bike ride. Once again, it’s been too long since I’ve been out on my bike. The boulevard is much less crowded on Sunday afternoons than it is on weekday mornings around 7:00. In fact, for quite a while today, there were more taxis than anything else out there.
That doesn’t mean that there was nothing to see, or no obstacles to avoid. It even seemed like some of the taxis were passing me a bit closer than normal. I’m sure it has something to do with the sight of a gringa on a bike, who is obviously out there for exercise and enjoyment, not just to get from one place to another. I’m also sure that the riding shorts, sleeveless jersey and mirror attached to my sunglasses make me just a bit more conspicuous. Target practice, perhaps?
At any rate, it certainly felt good to be riding. I did five laps on the boulevard and took a short side trip up toward El Volcan. I only got about one mile out on that road before turning around and heading back, though. I’m sure the young bull that was right in front of me, mooing, thought that he made me turn around. I think I sensed a little self-impressed twinkle in his eye as I turned. But, no, the real reason I decided to head back for home was because of the storm coming down the mountain. The thunder had a bit of a detrimental effect on my desire to keep riding. So, turn around I did, letting the bull think that it was all because of him.
Once back on the boulevard I finished my current lap and wondered if I could make it one more lap before the rain hit. Well, I decided that the temperature was dropping a bit too quickly and the clouds were getting darker and more ominous by the minute, so safety should probably rule the day. I made it back to the house just a few minutes before the rain started. Looks like I made the right decision. 13 miles. Not too bad, but not terribly good, either.
While out there today, I did see something new. I was headed up the boulevard and coming down on the other side was a man on a horse. That part is nothing new. But the man had a rope in his hand and was leading a small donkey with a young boy on it. OK, that’s not new, either. The new part is the young colt that was running along with them. Kind of. The colt had no halter or lead and was running in the median. And in the road. Then back to the median. It really did look like it was enjoying itself. But it made me nervous to wonder if it was going to bolt out into the road just as a car was passing. Thankfully, that didn’t happen, as evidenced by no colt in the road on my return trip.
That doesn’t mean that there was nothing to see, or no obstacles to avoid. It even seemed like some of the taxis were passing me a bit closer than normal. I’m sure it has something to do with the sight of a gringa on a bike, who is obviously out there for exercise and enjoyment, not just to get from one place to another. I’m also sure that the riding shorts, sleeveless jersey and mirror attached to my sunglasses make me just a bit more conspicuous. Target practice, perhaps?
At any rate, it certainly felt good to be riding. I did five laps on the boulevard and took a short side trip up toward El Volcan. I only got about one mile out on that road before turning around and heading back, though. I’m sure the young bull that was right in front of me, mooing, thought that he made me turn around. I think I sensed a little self-impressed twinkle in his eye as I turned. But, no, the real reason I decided to head back for home was because of the storm coming down the mountain. The thunder had a bit of a detrimental effect on my desire to keep riding. So, turn around I did, letting the bull think that it was all because of him.
Once back on the boulevard I finished my current lap and wondered if I could make it one more lap before the rain hit. Well, I decided that the temperature was dropping a bit too quickly and the clouds were getting darker and more ominous by the minute, so safety should probably rule the day. I made it back to the house just a few minutes before the rain started. Looks like I made the right decision. 13 miles. Not too bad, but not terribly good, either.
While out there today, I did see something new. I was headed up the boulevard and coming down on the other side was a man on a horse. That part is nothing new. But the man had a rope in his hand and was leading a small donkey with a young boy on it. OK, that’s not new, either. The new part is the young colt that was running along with them. Kind of. The colt had no halter or lead and was running in the median. And in the road. Then back to the median. It really did look like it was enjoying itself. But it made me nervous to wonder if it was going to bolt out into the road just as a car was passing. Thankfully, that didn’t happen, as evidenced by no colt in the road on my return trip.
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